Abysses

Virtual tour (online): Thurs. Nov. 26 at 5 pm

Virtual Art Hive: Sat. Dec. 19 from 10 am to 12 pm

Exhibition: Nov. 27 to Dec. 19

Abysses combines Guylaine Chevarie-Lessard’s practice in painting and drawing with her interest in pictorial installation devices that evoke landscape spaces. The starting point for this new series is the immersive experience of freediving trips. How can this underwater immersion experience be recreated in an abstract pictorial installation? In this experience, the body is in weightlessness, it observes the landscape below, around and in front of it. The depth of field is atmospheric rather than geometric, the elements float and appear closer than on land, the sound of our breathing mixes with silence as the only sound landscape. This experience places the observer-body all inside and all outside at the same time. When creating or encountering a painting or installation space, Lessard aims to find a sense of self without knowing in advance exactly what will arise during this experience.

This exhibition is jointly presented as part of Pictura, an event dedicated to the presentation and exhibition of contemporary painting in the expanded field, across the city of Montreal during the months of November and December 2020.

Guylaine Chevarie-Lessard’s practice is situated between pictorial installation and writing. She obtained a doctorate in Études et pratiques des arts at UQAM in 2015, after studying philosophy, literature and visual arts. Her first essay, La voix, entre l’audible et le visible, was published by Nota Bene in 2019. She has participated in several group and solo exhibitions, both provincially and nationally. Her last solo exhibition, Espace du dedans, was presented at the Maison des arts de Laval in 2019. She has been a recipient of the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec. Her works are part of private collections and the Desjardins collection.